MCU: Danny Rand vs Melinda May

Both May and Danny are unarmed

Round 1: Danny can't use chi

Round 2: Danny can use chi

Danny stomps both rounds...

Danny. Just an example, but I was just watching the fight in episode 12 where Danny utterly stomps one of Bakuto's bodyguards and goes on to fight Bakuto himself while Colleen and Davos fight with one of the other bodyguards each for a while. I feel like he's written as being a step above May on the MCU totem pole.

Danny wins. He was 3 for 3 vs Bakuto

Danny wins both rounds.

@angeljax: In the comics, Danny is older, wiser, more skilled and experienced than his year one MCU counterpart. He'd defeat Melinda with relative ease, with and without chi.

In the MCU:

Round 1: Without chi, Danny would still win. Realistically, Danny has an age, height and weight advantage. Actor Finn Jones is 28 years old, 6'0 and 147lbs, while actress Ming-Na Wen is 53 years old, 5'4 and 110 lbs. Even if we extrapolate their characters ages to be 22 and 42 respectively, it's still a young man in his prime against a middle-aged woman, who has taken more physical abuse over the years. His considerable reach and weight advantage would be difficult for May to overcome given his skill. Danny is a master of the K'un-Lun martial arts, having defeated everyone in K'un-Lun, including Davos who was trained since birth and will one day be the feared Steel Serpent. He is a Martial Arts Prodigy, trained in an unknown and mysterious artform May has never seen. While May is more diverse in her striking, having mastered multiple forms and is definitely more experienced, she fights hydra thugs and other agents with similar training. She doesn't fight legendary Masters of the Martial Arts. In the show, Danny makes short work of all of his armed adversaries in one-on-one encounters, including two of the immortal weapons, Dog Brother and Bride of the Nine Spiders, and one of the immortal leaders of the HAND. He also easily defends himself against multiple attackers. May struggles in similar circumstances to beat agents like Grant Ward, one-on-one, and usually takes more of a beating against multiple attackers. Her only real hope of defeating Danny is to prey on his anger, naivete, and ignorance of our world. Despite his childishness and lack of discipline, Danny centers himself in combat and overcomes his weaknesses. The more you hit him the more clear-headed he becomes. Danny is an immortal weapon, in a different weight class, built for total Victory. The Calvary is a seasoned Shield officer who hasn't fought anyone with serious Martial Arts Credentials.

Round 2: With Chi, Danny wins by one punch KO!

@cramandman: he did say MCU in the title of the battle

It's funny that everyone here considers MCU Iron Fist such a good fighter, when one of the many things about the show critics have been bashing is the unconvincing and poorly choreographed nature of the fight scenes.

Round 1 is one hell of a fight, but Danny should pull the majority

Danny stomps round 2

Iron Fist both rounds.

Iron fist both rounds

The fight choreography is usually pretty good actually. There are a couple fights (when Danny goes to get his hospital records for example) that are not very good though. But regardless of the cinematography and fight choreography, we get a really good baseline for Danny's skill and power. He has several aim dodging feats and even one bullet timing feat which makes him probably the fastest street leveler in the MCU right now, including Cap and Bucky. Also his Iron Fist punch is no joke.

Surprised no one has made a case for May yet. Who routinely goes against powered opponents and usually comes out on top.

For what it's worth, May has practical fighting down but Danny is more proficient from a technical standpoint.

Yeah, I've tried to use an argument along these lines for Nolan's Batman, and people treat him as a garbage fighter anyway. Apparently, if you're fighting style isn't pretty, you're not a good fighter. Rubbish if you ask me, but oh well.

But, if he can react to bullets and has a superhuman chi punch, then that would definitely elevate him in my eyes.

Still probably not going to watch the show though based on the savage reviews it's gotten so far. Of course, Jessica Jones is overrated as all get-out, so this could just be a case of the critics getting it wrong in the opposite direction.

I could see May pulling H2H, given her feats against Ward, Bobbi, metas, and various other opponents impress me more than beating some of the Hand fighters.

With Chi blasts Danny wins no question, but he doesn't have anything that places him definitively above her. They're likely peers

Could just be Iron Fist hype. I for one am surprised more people aren't bashing him for his choreography, given how many critics have been doing that, and how that's always been people's response to Nolanverse Batman. Pretty fighting styles are everything on CV.

@shroudofsorrow: The choreography isn't bad at all. Some are clunky, but it happens once every blue moon. Critics probably just wanted a reason to hate on the show.

When did Danny use blasts?

@angeljax: Not sure why that would be. All of the others got critical acclaim, even the one that didn't deserve it. Not sure why Iron Fist would get snubbed in that respect.

Yeah that's definitely true about Nolan's Batman, he gets underrated a lot because the fight choreography isn't great. Iron Fist as a show has better choreography than the Nolan movies did, but it doesn't meet the high bar that Daredevil set.

Honestly I think it would get a lot better if they started using Danny's mask. That helped Daredevil as a series because you could do longer shots with the stunt double without having to worry about fans recognizing it is a stunt double and not Charlie Cox fighting. I really don't get why they haven't given Danny his suit yet. Or a modified version of course.

Correction: he gets treated like the worst fighter of all time because his fighting style isn't pretty. Even though Ben Affleck Batman's skill feats are no better, but people think one is a good fighter and not the other. Why? Because one's fighting style is choreographed and the other's is clunky looking.

And yes, Iron Fist should get a costume at some point. Always hate it when the superheroes don't wear costumes.

@shroudofsorrow: I mean honestly Nolan's Batman probably has better skill feats than Snyder's, so in theory he should beat him in H2H. But nobody would ever say that because Snyder's Batman had such brutality (and if I'm being honest a pretty epic fight scene even though I didn't like that he killed people). But he struggled with goons Nolan's Batman would've just tore through.

@bflynn316: You pretty much summed it up. Nolan Batman had the upper hand against four LoS Ninjas at once (who could kill normal humans with their bare hands), beat Ra's al Ghul despite the latter's having the advantage of being his teacher, beat Bane after taking away his invulnerability, etc. But of course, his fighting style isn't pretty. The choreography's bad. Like I said, pretty fighting styles are everything on Comicvine.

But, back on topic, with Chi, Iron Fist has a serious edge against May, who I don't see withstanding hits like that. Without chi, I'd honestly back May for now, though if it were May with just Season 1 feats it would be a closer fight.

I'm really not sure how this is debatable... Danny would beat Ollie fairly easily, May isn't on Ollies level... Danny simply wins lmao

That's debatable, actually. Personally, I think she is on his level.

@komboing: May isn't really all that far away from Ollie. They're on similar playing fields, In my opinion.

@shroudofsorrow: I've seen her fight, she is on Black Widows level, Panther is more skilled than Natasha and Ollie is more skilled than Panther *without his panther herb* and even Ollie isn't on Danny's level.

@shroudofsorrow: I'm not denying that she is a great fighter... but this is Danny Rand we're talking about... the best Marvel has to offer T_T

@angeljax: *Similar* Ollie is still better than her, and Ollie isn't on Danny's level

Nothing to indicate Panther is ever anything other than superhuman in the MCU. You are correct that Arrow has better H2H skills, but MCU Panther as is would stomp Arrow anyway owing to better physicals, (and please don't invoke the Mirakuru fights, because they don't do a thing to contradict that). Similarly, Panther would stomp Nat...but as much because he's stronger and tougher as anything else.

And, May is well above BW's level. Black Widow has beaten fodder and Hawkeye (who is featless in H2H outside of his fights with Nat). May has also beaten fodder, plus featless opponents (like Hawkeye), plus people who actually have feats of their own (Ward, namely). She's also done well against Mockingbird, who could contend with Ward and Number 33 simultaneously while injured. She is closer to Arrow in skill than she is to Black Widow.

And, in case you're going to invoke arrow-timing...don't. I never want to see that argument ever, ever again. Ever.

I agree with this completely. Arrow is completely overblown in abilities. Good, yes, but not as unassailable as people suggest. May can absolutely keep up with him in H2H, and that's coming from a guy who likes Arrow a hell of a lot more than AoS.

@shroudofsorrow: yeah, most of that is correct, but as I said, Danny is simply on another level. Oliver would last a minute or less against him. And I have watched arrow since the day it came out, it's my favorite superhero show. But he is simply not Danny level, and neither is May.

@shroudofsorrow: I don't dispute that May could hang with Oliver, but she certainly wouldn't beat him lmao. She's in his league, but Ollie is at the top of that league, May is around Sara level, which is somewhere close to the bottom of Ollies league.

@komboing: Oh, I'm not challenging the idea that May is not on Danny's level (at least, not chi-enhanced Danny anyway). From what I've gathered:

Chi-enhanced Iron Fist Vs. May: Iron Fist

Chi-enhanced Iron Fist Vs. Green Arrow: Iron Fist

Iron Fist sans Chi Vs. May: May for now in a good fight

Iron Fist sans Chi Vs. Current Green Arrow: Oliver in a good fight

I think that's how it would go for now.

@shroudofsorrow: uhh that's not what I was saying. I'm saying in terms of pure skill, Oliver is nowhere near Danny. Chi or not Danny is the most skilled person in all of MCU by far, you're basing it purely off feats :P Iron Fist is the single most skilled person in all of Marvel, besides maybe Shang Chi. And he holds up to that on the show. There is no way Ollie or May could hang with him.

@shroudofsorrow: watch Ollie fight someone and then watch Danny fight. Fighting for Danny is first hand nature, and he is STOMPING the best people in marvel, I won't spoil it for you *idk if you've seen the end* but he beats one of the best fighters in Marvel fairly easily. And Marvel fighters are simply more skilled than DC fighters overall

Shang/IronFist would destroy Dragon/Shiva

The only characters in all of comics that can beat Shang or Iron Fist *without chi* are Karate Kid, Batman One Million and maybe Snake Eyes

Still gonna back May in the first round. She can keep up with Danny and possibly beat him.

@nfactor1995: Thoughts?

@angeljax: Not sure tbh. Close fight though IMO.

Round 1 I give to May, but in a close fight. Round 2 is a stomp in Danny's favor, the zen state he can go into with chi gives him unbelievable combat speed.

@komboing: He is not stomping the best in marvel, that is ridiculous. The only able people he has fought literally only have feats against Danny...that doesn't make them the best in Marvel. Not even close.

Danny nearly got stomped by random tuff in a truck. He struggled heavily against a security guard, and another occasion had to flee and split them. SECURITY GUARDS.

He got beat down by Harold on the roof...and don't give me crap about his mental state. The mental game is a huge part of being a great fighter. you don't have it? Congrats Miguel Torres.

We can't even say he beat Harold afterward because he didn't...he attacked from behind and hit him ONCE.

DANNY'S relative tier is that of security guards and police officers. The best he has faced off against are dea agents who he caught by surprise, and it still took him a sec. Melinda May literally stomped the primitives in around the same amount of time.

Danny struggled with a tough guy in a truck with no real technical ability and he got beat down. May has gone heads up with dudes who could slide a 40 foot shipping container across a warehouse with one hand and little effor, and she wasn't overwhelmed at all.

If Danny was really this great technical fighter, then he should have no problem mimicking that, but we can see that isn't true. Danny had issues with four frigging mental patients until he could summon his iron fist...and we are trying to compare him to people like May and Bobbi and Ward? Just no.

He isn't even more "skilled"...based what? Static training with no competition outside the rigid forms he is used to? How much 9f that was spent on actual fight training, and how much of it was spent on movements and meditations to focus chi? How much was spent on actual fight training and much was spent just learning? He was a kid when he went there.

Is the quality of training better? Why? Shield and Hydra have been active for MILLENIA in the MCU. Have the hand and kun lun been? Prove it.

Forget just training...Melinda May has been active Shield agent on the frontline for longer than Danny Rand has even been alive. She has fought more superhumans then he has actual displayed one on one fights on the show, and she competes at a NOTABLY higher tier on a regular basis.

May...easy. NOBODY ON THE IRON FIST CAST STANDS THE REMOTEST OF CHANCE AGAINST ONE OF THE AOS TOP TIERS.

Danny both rounds.

@paytience: you and Mtsuke really underestimate Danny lmao, and if you actually think May can beat Danny, I'm not even gonna argue with you lol

Danny.

@paytience: Bruh, that's some major lowballing you're doing to Danny in that post. I agree that Danny doesn't stomp but come on at least give him some credit.

Danny stomps hard

That random goon was a Hand agent who was executed for failure, implying he'd never failed before. Not saying it makes him some sort of impressive master, but that's enough to put him above your baseline fodder

Right, because May's never taken cover when faced with people shooting at her. May uses guns to deal with shooters, Danny used the Iron Fist

Does May have a personal connection to Danny to cause him conflict? Does she know anything about him to mess with his head? No, and no.

You can't honestly be so biased that you think struggling with Harold is a good standard for judging Danny, right?

That's blatantly false

Also false, she was overwhelmed

Once again, false, and leaving out context. They weren't mental patients, they were hired by Ward to get rid of Danny, and the reason he had trouble was because, after he'd been tricked and sent to the facility, they kept him heavily drugged. It was even mentioned that they had to use way higher doses on him than on any of the other patients. Once he managed to focus his chi to break the straightjacket (another thing that was making it difficult to fight back) and partially re-energize himself, he one-shotted all of them.

Shield hasn't been active for millennia. Hydra has, sure, but it's not like their whole purpose is training in martial arts

Sure, she's encountered plenty of superhumans, but if you're gonna act like she beat all of them (and most likely ignore the context of how she beat them)....no.

We get it, you're heavily biased in favor of Agents of Shield, but seriously dude, at least get your facts straight

@arcus1: okay if you even try to tell me that Chase didn't beat Ollie that time you're dead to me :P and because of that he is now at least Ollie's level, or above.

Round 1: May

Round 2:probably danny

Bump